Electrical-tube-connecter twisting device



1,629,800 May 24. 1921. w. J. LEACH ELECTRICAL TUBE GONNECTER TWISTINGDEVICE Filed March 9, .1925

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ATTORNEYS is extremely simple in construction,

Patented May 24, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM J. LEACH, OF BURLINGTON, WISCONSIN.

EI'J'ECTRICAL'1UBE GONNECTER TWISTING DEVICE cal conductors togetherwhere these conductors are disposed at places that afi'ord very littleroom for the workmen to perform the operation, as for example, where theconductors are disposed close to theground or where the conductors aredisposedclose to another conducting cable. In each of these instances,the'clearance room around the conductors being spliced is very small,and itis therefore impossible to completely rotatethe handles of thedevice due to this fact. With the present form of the device a ratchetmechanism is provided whereby the connecting tube may be twisted througha number of revolutions, thisbeing accomplished by swinging the handlesthrough a very small arc and repeating this operation until the ratchetwheel has been rotated the required number of turns.

A further object of my invention is to provide adevice of the typedescribed which is designed so as to employ dies of various sizeswhereby the device may be used to twist tubes of different diameters.

A further object of my invention is ato provide a device and durable andelficient for the purpose intended.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification,and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed outin the appendedclaims.

My invention is illustrated-in the accompanying drawings, forming partof this application, in which I Figure 1 is a side elevatlon of thedevice,

Figure 2 is a section along the:li-ne22 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 1s a side elevation of the'ratchet mechanism, portions thereofbeingbroken' away,

Figure '41s a side elevation of a tube before the tube has been twisted,

, Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure' i but in this case the tube haslJBQDi'WlS tBElytII-Xd tube. :6 may be employed such as that shown in-F1gure-..6. The tube in'this Figure is not proy ided'withthe-.reenforcing ribs.

of the type described which Application fiIedMaIQh B, 1 925. SerialNo.14a342.

Figurefi is a sectional view of a tube of a different shapethan thatSllOWIlilIl Figures 4 and 5.

In carrying out my invention 1 provide a tube twister Aand a tubetwister B that are adapted to be'mount'ed upon the ends of a tube'l (seeFigure 4), whereupon a. rotation of a tube twister A with respect to thetube twister B'will twist the'tube in the manner shownin Figure 5. Ofcourse the tube has previously been threaded with cables .2 :and

'3. The twisting of the tube connects the cables together and also makesa perfect electrical connection between the cables. The special type oftube used in connection with the cables 2 and 3 is shown in crosssection in Figure 1. Thetube has two reenforcing ribs 4 down Ithe centerthereof, thus providing two passageways 5 for the cables 2 and 3, andalso reenforcing the If desired, a different kind of tube I will nowdescribe the tubeitwister A. This twister .is shownin Figures 1,12 and 3and comprises a'body portion .7 and. handles 8 and 8. The body portion 7is divided into two sections, these sections abutting each other alongthe line 9. Thesections 7' and 7 are pivotally connected to eachtotherat 10 and are adapted to beclamped in closed position bymeans of a yoke11 and a set screw 12. The yo-keispivotally carried by the handle 8 at13 and H1Ely b6 swung into .the'full lineposition so'as to receive atongue '14 carried by :the section 7. The

sections 7' and 7" .are then looked together .by means ot-a-set screw12.

The sections 7 and 7" form a housing clearly :shown in Figure 2. Thehousing has .a'bore l5: merging into a. larger *bore 16.Positionedbetween the two'bores .15 and 16 is agroove 17,for azpurposenow to be described. The bores 15 and =16act as journals for cylindricalportions 18 and 19 of the ratchet mechanism 20. The "teeth 21 of theratchet are received in the annular groove 17. From the GOIIStIUCtIOII:thus far described, it will be apparent thatthe sections 7 and 7 maybeswung into open position swung together and locked by means of theyoke 11 and set screw 12. The ratchet is now free to be rotated withinthe housing 7.

The ratchet mechanism 20 is adapted to be rotated in only one directionas the handles 8 and 3 are rocked back and forth through a small arc. Tothis end I provide ratchet teeth 21 that are shaped so as to permit theratchet mechanism to rotate in only one direction. A spring pressed pawl22 engages with the teeth 21 and permits the ratchet to rotate in thedirection of the arrow shown in Figure 1.

In Figures 2 and 3, I show how the ratchet mechanism 21 is composed oftwo sections 20 and 20". These sections are locked together by means ofa spring pressed pin 24L. The section 20 carries a tongue 25 that isslidably received in a slot 26 in the section 20". The pin 23 passesthrough an opening in the tongue 25 and thus connects the two Sectionstogether. The section 20 is also provided with a tongue 27 that isreceived in a slot 28 in the section 20 (see Figure 3). The tongue 27has an opening 29 therein that is adapted to receive the pin 24. Itshould be noted that the outer edge of the tongue 27 is beveled as at 30so as to cam the pin 24 in place.

The purpose for providing a ratchet mechanism 20 in two sections is topermit the ratchet mechanism to receive different dies. In Figure 1, Ihave shown the dies as being provided with an opening 31 that is shapedso as to receive the ribbed tube 1. The dies 32 are identical withrespect to each other, and two of these dies are carried by the ratchetmechanism 20, each of the sections 20 and 20 carrying one of the dies.

The means for locking the dies 32 in the sections 20 and 20" is shown inFigures 2 and 3. I show the dies as being provided with flanges 33.Figure 2 shows how the flanges are slidably received in annular grooves34;. Figures 2 and 3 further show how the flanges 33 are provided withlocking flanges 36, these flanges being received in annular grooves 37that project laterally from the grooves The flanges 36 terminateadjacent to the. edges of the dies 32 so as to permit the dies to passstops 35 carried by the two sections of the housing. Thesestops areshown in Figure 2 although it will be apparent that the same stops arealso used in Figure 1. To insert the dies in the ratchet mechanism it isnecessary to manually release the spring pressed pin 24 from the opening29 whereupon the two sectionsmay be swung apart. One of the dies 32 isnow threaded into the annular grooves 34 and 37 and the die is rotatedwith r spect to the section until finally the end of'the flange 36 abutsagainst the stop 35. Further movement of the die with respect to thesection is prevented. Of course the stop 35 is positioned with respectto the section so as to abut the end of the flange 36 when the dies arein the proper position. The other die is disposed in the other sectionin like manner. The stops 35 have a further function which will be setforth hereinafter.

Thedies 32 are trictionally held against movement with respect to thesections by spring pressed balls 38 (see Figure These balls prevent thedies from moving with respect to the sections 20 and 20 when thesections are swung into open position. Set screws 39 holdv the springsetO and balls 38 in place.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device. theoperation thereof may be readily understood. hen connecting the cables-2 and 3 together, the tube twisters A and B are used and are mountedupon the tube 1 in the manner shown in Figure 4. Before the tubetwisters are mounted upon the tube 1, they are provided with the dies32. In assembling the dies 32 in the tube twister A, the sections 7 and7" are first swung into open position so as to'permit the ratchetmechanism to be removed. The ratchet mechanism is then opened and thedies 32 are threaded into the grooves 34 and 37 in the manner heretoforedescribed. The stops 35 limit the movement 8 of the dies after the dieshave been moved into the proper position. The ratchet mech anism is nowclosed andplaced within the housing 7. Of course the openings 31 in thedies are the same shape as the cross section through the tube 1 so as topermit the tube twisters to be disposed upon the tube 1 in the mannershown in Figure 4. One of the operators now holds the tube twister Bwhile the other one actuates the tube twister A. The ratchet mechanismin the tube twister A permits the handles 8' and 8 to be swung through asmall are. This slight swinging of the handles rotates the ratchetmechanism in one direction step by step, the ratchet mechanism turns thedies which in turn twist the tube in the manner shown in Figure 5. Thestops 35 not only limit the movement of the dies when the dies areplaced within the tube twisters, but also prevent the rotation of thedies with respect to the housings when the tube twisters are turned soas to twist the tube. The housing is provided with reentlorcing ribs soas to strengthen the device at the required point.

As stated in the first part of the specification, the ratchet mechanismis especially designed so as to permit the tube twisters to be used inplaces where the standard tube twisters cannot be used. Thisconstruction permits the tube/twister to be used where the ends of thetwo cables are connected to each other by rope and tackle. It is obviousthat if the old style of twister were used, the rope and tackle would bewound about the cable and thus defeat the purpose of the device. \Viththe ratchet wheel the slight swinging of the handles will rotate theratchet without in any way interfering with the rope and tackle. Anotheradvantage lies in the fact that the tube twister may be used to join acable that is disposed adjacent to a second cable. With the old style oftube twister, the second cable would interfere with the normal operationof the twister. lVith the present device, the slight swinging of thehandles would overcome this disadvanage. The device is extremely simplein construction and durable and efficient for the purpose intended.

I claim:

1. A tube twister comprising a body portion, a ratchet mechanismremovably carried by said body portion, said ratchet mechanismcomprising two sections hingedly secured to each other, an arm carriedby each section and extending outwardly, one on each side of said bodyportion, a die carried by each section, means for locking said diestogether, and means for limiting the movement of said dies when saiddies are disposed in said ratchet mechanism, said means being adapted toprevent the rotation of said dies with respect to said body portion.

2. A tube twister comprising a body portion, av ratchet mechanismremovably carried by said body portion adapted to rotate with respect tosaid body portion, means carried by said body portion for preventing therotation of said ratchet mechanism in one direction with respect to saidbody portion,

said body portion comprising two sections adapted to be secured togetherso as to lock said ratchet mechanism in said body portion, said ratchetmechanism comprising two sections adapted to be locked together, each ofsaid sections having a locking groove there in, a die carried by eachsection, means for locking said dies together, and springpressed ballsfor holding the dies within said sections, said dies having lockingflanges adapted to enter the locking'groove,

carrying a stop member in said groove, a

die carried by each section and having a locking flange adapted to enterthe locking groove, said flange abutting said stops insaid grooves anddisposed in operative position, means for positively locking said diestogether, and means for frictionally engaging with said dies to hold thedies in operative position.

4. A device of the type described comprising a wiretwisting member, diescarried by said member, means for locking said dies together,spring-pressed balls for holding the dies within said member, said diesbeing interchangeable, means for limiting the movement of said dies whensaid dies are inserted in said member, said means being adapted toprevent the rotation of said dies with respect to said member when saiddies are disposed in position.

5. A device of the type described comprising a wire-twisting member, apair of arms extending outwardly, one on each side of said member, diescarried by said member, means for locking said dies together,springpressed balls for holding said dies in said member, and means forlimiting the movement of said dies when said dies are inserted in saidmember, said means being adapted to prevent the rotation of said dieswith respect to said member when said dies are disposed in position.

WILLIAM J. LEACH.

